RELATED POSTS

Whether movies are better or books is a debate that can never be settled with fierce advocates of both never agreeing. Team Book loves to complain about how details get lost in the adaptations, the changes made for the worse or how books are much better than the movies. While that might be true, the reverse also happens when the movie ends up being better than the book it was based on. These flicks are a score for Team Movie, proving the debate is there for good reason. We're not here to pick sides, but these five Hollywood movies were actually better than the books.

Forrest Gump is a Hollywood classic that inspired many and showed the acting brilliance of Tom Hanks yet again. It was also based on a book by Winston Groom. Even he had to admit that the movie "took the rough edges off the character" and gave us the Gump we have known to love and cherish.

Jaws (1975)

Jaws is a Speilberg classic that was based on a book. While the author Peter Benchley's work focused on the characters rather than the shark, Speilberg made the shark the biggest draw of the film. It became highest grossing Hollywood film ever until Star Wars released two years later.

Another Spielberg classic, this was based on a book by Michael Crichton. The book focused on the dangers of reviving dinosaur DNA while the movie made us care for the characters with some magnificent special effects for the time. This also went on to become the highest-grossing movie ever, until Titanic in 1997.

The Godfather (1972)

The Godfather and its sequels are a must-watch for any Hollywood movie buff. They were based on Mario Puzo's novel. While the book was certainly a great read, the movies got everything right and became much more memorable – from scenes to dialogues that are given a shoutout to this day.

The Prestige (2006)

This Christopher Nolan gem was also a book. Christopher Priest's book was written in the form of diaries by the characters. Nolan made a lot of changes while adapting the novel, from the narrative structure to the ending, and it paid off to create a vastly superior movie.

Which other movies do you think are better than the books? Let us know in the comments.